Alfred Tomatis, The Tomatis Method and The Listening Program
The Tomatis Method is based on a developmental model of how we all learned to listen - a process that started in the womb.
According to Tomatis, the fetus hears only high frequencies.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
Dr. Alfred A. Tomatis was born on January 1, 1920 in Nice (France), and passed away on Christmas Day 2001.
When he was eleven, he moved to Paris and became an Ear, Nose and Throat Specialist (ENT). After the second
world war he started studying the impact of occupational noise. What he discovered through his research was considered
revolutionary. In recognition of his discoveries, he was Knighted by the Public Health of France in 1951.
He was also awarded the gold medal for Scientific Research in Brussels in 1958. Tomatis wrote 14 books, and numerous
articles. Only 3 of his books have been translated into English.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
After many years of research, Dr. Tomatis developed his Tomatis Method. The method goes by different names, such as
"auditory stimulation," "auditory training," and "listening therapy." The purpose of the Tomatis Method is to re-educate
the way we listen, to improve learning and language abilities, communication, creativity, and social behavior.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
The Tomatis Method has helped tens of thousands of children and adults with auditory processing problems, dyslexia,
learning disabilities, autism, attention deficit disorders, and others with sensory integration and motor-skills
difficulties. It has helped adults fight anxiety and depression, addiction, compulsive disorders, learn foreign languages faster,
develop better communication skills, and improve job performance. Many musicians, singers, and actors have been able to
improve their voice intonation with the Tomatis Method. In addition, many people have seen significant psychological
gains, such as improved self-confidence, higher levels of energy and motivation, greater clarify of mind, and a greater
sense of well-being.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
The Tomatis Method is used in over 250 Tomatis Centers worldwide by certified specialists from the fields of psychology,
medicine, education, speech therapy, occupational therapy, and music.
The Listening Program (TLP)
is based on Dr. Tomatis' theories in a much simpler yet equally effective protocol.
To use the Tomatis Method, you must attend a Tomatis Center, which involves intensive therapy and
additional treatments under the direct supervision of a doctor trained in the Tomatis method.
Using The Listening Program
is much more convenient as it can be used in the privacy of your home or office any time you
like. The Listening Program
can also be used effectively before or after attending a Tomatis Center.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method Tomatis' Theory The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
The theory underlying the Tomatis' theory of sound stimulation is based on a developmental model. This presupposes that many of the behavioral and communicative idiosyncrasies observed in Autism and PDD, are not the causes of the disorder, but rather are symptoms based on underlying biologically based regulatory disorders. The focus of the treatment is on the sensory systems involved in sensory regulation, in the effort to provide an improved foundation for normal development to take place upon. There are many studies on how lack of, or abnormal stimulation, results in delayed and atypical development. The same process occurs in children with Autism and PDD. Their central nervous systems does not allow them to properly perceive, process and organize sensory information from their bodies and their environment, that are necessary to respond adaptively and develop normally.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
The inner ear, which is really the vestibular-cochlear system, is one of the earliest sensory systems to develop and mylinize in utero. The ear completes its development well before all the other sensory organs. The inner ear reaches adult size and become fully operational, sending information to the developing temporal lobe, by the fifth month in utero. The ears primacy in the developmental process allows it to develops and maintains connections with the rest of the emerging nervous system. This is why stimulation to this system, via sound, provides an important portal into the central nervous system.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
Dr. Tomatis has talked about the importance of the fetus' early listening in the later development of audio-vocal control and language. In experiments he made to duplicate listening from within the womb, he found that the low frequency sounds of respiration, heart beat, and visceral noises were filtered out through the liquid environment. He found that mainly the filtered, high frequency sounds of the mother's voice were what was left. These high frequency filtered sounds comprised a large part of what the fetus was listening to. These sounds are transmitted rapidly via bone conduction from the mother's spinal column to the fetus.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
Observations have shown that babies are born imprinted to their mother's voice, just as Konrad Lorenz found in his study of ducks which he imprinted to his voice. Phonemes are the smallest units of sound from which we form words. There are 50 phonemes from which all language is formed. By the seventh month in utero, the fetus responds to each of the phonemes in a word (spoken by the mother) with a specific muscular movement. There is also no time delay between the sensory input of the mothers voice and the motor response of the baby. This is consistent with Tomatis' theory that the fetus is listening to the mothers voice, via rapid bone conduction, and that this listening plays an important role in the development of audio-vocal control and language.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
It is important to give specific mention to the vestibular portion of the inner ear mechanism. This can be called the "ear of the body." The vestibular system detects motion, gravity and provides us with our sense of balance. The vestibular system influences the underlying state of our muscle tone through its direct influence on anti-gravity musculature and contributed to our erect posture. The vestibular system has influence over other sensory systems and can help regulate sensitivity to touch, sound, vision, and movement. The vestibular system provides the opportunity for the two sides of the body to communicate on the brain stem level. This helps with the development of bilateral extremity movement and the development of laterality and specialization of skills. The vestibular system also has direct connection with the eyes so that the individual knows if s/he or the room is moving. The eyes relay on the vestibular system to accurately interpret information from the visual field. This relationship provided the basis for form and space perception and visual processing. The vestibular portion of the vestibular cochlear system also provides the foundation for auditory processing as it provides dimension and locality in auditory perception.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
Due to the primacy of the vestibular-cochlear system in the developmental process, the use of sound stimulation provides an opportunity to influence many areas of function including gross motor, fine motor, visual processing, auditory process, attention, and speech and language.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
The Listening Program is an auditory therapy program that is easy to do at home, is enjoyable, and also very
successful in strengthening auditory and related abilities. The Listening Program is a program that benefit anyone, but
specifically individuals who have difficulties in the areas of auditory perception, processing, and memory.
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
Please visit our Listening Program resource pages below for more information:
The Listening Program and Tomatis Method
Monday, January 05, 2009
The Tomatis Method is based on a developmental model of how we all learned to listen - a process that started in the womb.
According to Tomatis, the fetus hears only high frequencies.
